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Fourth Of July By The Numbers: Stats On Food, Fireworks, Flags & More

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Ever wonder how much the country spends on 4th of July celebrations each year? Between all the food for cookouts, flags and fireworks, Americans spend a whopping amount on 4th of July celebrations, and thanks to some expert number crunching by the U.S. Census Bureau, we can see just how much we spend celebrating America’s Independence!

Take a look at some of the interesting stats on 4th of July celebrations in America provided by the U.S. Census Bureau below!

Population then & now:

When the Declaration of Independence was signed in 1776, the estimated population in the U.S. was 2.5 million. In 2013, that number has grown to 316.5 million currently living in the U.S.

Flags:

In 2012, the dollar value of U.S. imports of American flags was $3.8 million, with the vast majority of this amount ($3.6 million) going towards U.S. flags made in China.

Fireworks:

$218.2 million was spent on fireworks imported from China in 2012, representing the bulk of all U.S. fireworks imported ($227.3 million).

Food:

65.9 million — The number of all hogs and pigs on March 1, 2013. Chances are that the pork hot dogs and sausages consumed on the Fourth of July originated in Iowa. The Hawkeye State was home to 20.3 million hogs and pigs.

6.3 billion pounds — The total estimated production of cattle and calves in Texas in 2012. Chances are good that the beef hot dogs, steaks and burgers on your backyard grill came from the Lone Star State, which accounted for nearly one-sixth of the nation’s total production.

There’s a good chance that one of six states including Georgia, Arkansas, North Carolina, Alabama, Mississippi or Texas is the source of your barbecued chicken. These six states had an estimated value of $1 billion in chicken production between December 2011 and November 2012.

Potato salad is a popular food item at Fourth of July barbecues, and there’s a good chance your spuds come from Idaho with 345 million total acreage planted in 2012, the most in the nation.

Patriotic names:

Fifty-nine places contain the word “liberty” in the name. Pennsylvania, with 11, has more of these places than any other state.

In addition, the most common patriotic-sounding word used within place names is “union” with 136. Pennsylvania, with 33, has more of these places than any other state. Other words most commonly used in place names are Washington (127), Franklin (118), Jackson (96) and Lincoln (95).